L.A. Law Firm Puts Fights for Gay Rights in Court & at Home

Paul Hastings is a Los Angeles powerhouse. Founded in 1951, it has grown to become one of the largest law firms in Southern California, with branches in several cities and overseas -- all together 20 offices with 1,000 lawyers.

The firm is especially well known for its employee practice. Paul Hastings has taken on the case of employees in companies like Hughes Aircraft and UPS, for whom the firm negotiated a $12.14 million settlement for black employees who claimed the parcel delivery company had systematically denied them advancement and extra hours.

The firm has apparently taken those cases to heart, because it has become well known as one of, if not the, most gay friendly law firms in the county. iWon, a website that rates law firms for perspective lawyers, noted, "The firm does seem to be accepting of gay attorneys. An associate reveals, 'I note with pleasure that no one seems to care at all what anyone's sexual preference is.' Others indicate that 'there are a large number of openly gay attorneys who work at Paul Hastings.' 'We have several openly gay attorneys and staff. The atmosphere is open and refreshing.' "

This might be a corporate law firm, but there's nothing uptight about its policies toward employees. The firm offers all of the same benefits to same-sex partners that it does to legally married ones. Not only that, but it's diversity training includes special attention to gay, lesbian and transgendered co-workers.

Transgendered employees received special leave after gender-reassignment surgery and paid-for mental-health counseling. They also receive reimbursement through insurance for hormone therapy and surgical procedures relating to their gender reassignment.

The firm is ranked among the top 20 law firms in the country on American Lawyer's Diversity Scorecard (as well as a 100 on the HRC's scorecard). The firm has been ranked first for LGBT employees on at least one scorecard.

LGBTA networks in its home base of Los Angeles, as well as its New York and San Francisco offices serve not only to bring together LGBT employees but also to ensure that programs within the company are inclusive and supportive of LGBT lawyers. They also help collaborate on community service and pro bono projects, for which the firm is particularly well known. Paul Hastings contributes far more pro bono (that is, for free) time to LGBT causes than almost any other big law firm.

In 2008, HRC awarded its annual "Ally of Justice" award to Paul Hastings for its pro bono work for the organization. "Through its contributions to the HRC and its own commitment to diversity, Paul Hastings has been a model partner in the effort to advance equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals," said Robert Falk, general counsel of the Human Rights Commission at the time.

As an example of the "consciousness raising" Paul Hastings does within the firm, in 2010, the San Francisco office held a general luncheon in which a Naval Reserve commander who had been dismissed presented the lawyers with a brief explaining how Don't Ask Don't Tell (then still in effect) was harmful to the nation's military.

Paul Hastings has also been honored for its pro bono work in the fight against HIV/AIDS. It has received the "Spirit of Hope" award from Being Alive, an AIDS service organization, which cited its financial contributions as well as attorneys' time donated to the group.

Paul Hastings attorneys serve on the boards of organizations such as the Human Rights Campaign, Lambda Legal, and Out & Equal Workplace Advocates. It also partners with the Williams Institute, the indispensable think tank at the University of California-Los Angeles dedicated to research on LGBT topics. Jeff Haber, a partner in the L.A. office, serves on the prestigious "Founder's Council" of the Williams Institute.

The Williams connection is especially important, because the institute relies on legal eagles actively working in the trenches (or, rather, court system) on issues of importance to LGBT Americans. Paul Hastings' lawyers contribute much to the institute's knowledge about employee law -- and where companies fall short.

But the company has also put its money where its mouth is. In just on three-year period, Paul Hasting donated an astonishing half-million dollars to LGBT organizations.

American law firms have done a 180-turn since the bad old days dramatized in the 1993 film "Philadelphia." Today, the legal profession is outstanding in its general support for LGBT rights. Which makes Paul Hastings all the more special for standing out in the legal sphere.